Nigeria’s hope lies in the hands of Igbo people —-Vice President Kashim Shettima

Vice-President Kashim Shettima, Monday, flagged-off the Light Up Nigeria Project in Enugu as part of the federal government’s efforts to improve power supply to industrial clusters in the South-east.

The flag-off of the Light Up Nigeria Project was organised by the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC).

The NDPHC is a government-owned company responsible for implementing the National Integrated Power Project and operates a portfolio of gas thermal electricity generation assets in Nigeria.

Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State, Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State, Governor Charles Soludo of Anambra State, and their Ebonyi State counterpart, Francis Nwifuru, attended the event.

Speaking during the flag-off at the Old Government Lodge, Enugu, Mr Shettima said President Bola Tinubu has resolved to return to the South-east region as the nation’s industrial powerhouse.

The vice-president described the project as a “transformation journey” and “renewal of hope” for industrialists and investors in the South-east region.

“The long awaited solution to epileptic power supply is finally here and this project will help to stabilise Nigeria because if there is no power, there can’t be industrialization.

“The economic fortune of Nigeria remains the critical concern of President Tinubu as we believe that if the power sector works, Nigeria works too, so we must make the project work and make the South-east work,” Mr Shettima said.

“This marks the renewal of hope for investors and industrialists. This is not a ribbon-cutting charade. This is a calculated endeavour to re-engineer our economy.

“The project serves as a long-awaited solution to the power supply that has undermined our economy over the past decades,” he added.

‘Igbo is the hope of Nigeria’
Mr Shettima said the Igbo-speaking people of the South-east were notable for their hard work, saying the hope of Nigeria is with Igbos.

“Some describe the Igbo as the Nigerian Jews; geographically mobile, economically enterprising and educationally ambitious. You have the hope of the nation, right in our midst. The hope of the nation rests with Ndigbo,” he said.

Speaking at the event, Mr Mbah commended the federal government and the NDPHC for flagging off the Light-Up Nigeria Project, saying the initiative aligns with his administration’s “disruptive approach to governance” in the state.

“The Light up Nigeria Project today is, in my view, a new dawn for power in the South-east and one of the most innovative initiatives in the power sector.

“This project is of critical importance since it deals with the power sector, which I believe is pivotal to economic growth. Indeed, if we fix power, a lot of other sectors would fall into place,” he said.

“The programme will certainly bring improved access to affordable power to the South-east. This will in turn result in reduced power costs for the productive sector and enable them to improve productivity and generate jobs.

“This is critical in this day where the country is pushing to boost production and drive-up exports to ultimately shore up our domestic currency,” the governor added.

On his part, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the NDPHC, Chiedu Ugbo, said the event marks the formal launch of the South-east phase of the strategic collaboration between NDPHC and other project partners to provide “steady and reliable electricity supply” to industrial and business clusters across Nigeria.

Mr Ugbo said the event was intended to provide an opportunity for the business community in the South-east to interact with Mr Shettima.

He added that the initiative is evidence of President Tinubu’s commitment and determination to provide reliable and sustainable solutions to the electricity challenge in the country.

“Today’s event builds on the commitment made by His Excellency (Shettima) at Agbara (Ogun State) and will be replicated in other geopolitical zones across the country,” he said.

The NDPHC boss, however, lamented that although the company has various plants for power generation, their utilisation has been hindered by technical challenges and market constraints.

“One major challenge is the lack of sufficient transmission and distribution infrastructure to transport power from the plants,” he said.

–